The Last Vice Standing
Why THC is Replacing Everything Else
Alcohol gives you a headache. Pills give you a problem. Cigarettes give you cancer. Even caffeine, America’s favorite stimulant, is catching flak for triggering anxiety and destroying sleep. Every traditional vice is falling out of fashion — except one.
Cannabis is the last one standing.
In a world that’s grown suspicious of nearly every mood-altering substance, THC is undergoing a reputation renaissance. It’s not just tolerated anymore. It’s not just “medicinal” or “recreational.” It’s becoming the default. More and more people are skipping the nightcap in favor of a gummy. Bars are swapping IPAs for infused seltzers. Couples are trading wine for weed and waking up without regrets. It’s a quiet revolution — and it’s happening everywhere.
Why? Because cannabis does what other vices say they do — only better.
Want to loosen up at a party? THC will do the job without turning your liver into a science experiment. Need help sleeping? You can skip the Ambien and try something that won’t leave you in a fog. Feeling anxious? Try microdosing THC and CBD instead of chasing a Xanax prescription. Whether it’s pain, focus, stress, or creativity, cannabis offers relief without wreckage.
More importantly, cannabis comes with options. This isn’t the brick weed of the '90s or a one-size-fits-all joint behind a gas station. We’re in the era of customized highs — sativa if you want to clean the house, indica if you want to melt into it, hybrid if you want to coast somewhere in between. You can drink it, eat it, vape it, dab it, or rub it on your back. Whatever you need, there’s a cannabinoid — and a consumption method — built for it.
And here’s the kicker: it’s legal. Or at least, legal enough. Thanks to the 2018 Farm Bill and a patchwork of state laws, you can walk into a store in North Carolina and buy the same plant that someone in California calls marijuana. They just slap a different label on it and call it hemp. Either way, it gets you high — and you can still be up early for work.